Quanell X right, speaks during a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. where customer Christopher McGrew was killed during a robbery Tuesday at the shop, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston. ( James Nielsen / Houston Chronicle )

Photo By James Nielsen

Quanell X right, speaks during a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. where customer Christopher McGrew was killed during a robbery Tuesday at the shop, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston. ( James Nielsen / Houston Chronicle )

Photo By James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle

Quanell X right, along with family of Christopher McGrew speak during a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. where customer Christopher McGrew was killed during a robbery Tuesday at the shop, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston.

Photo By James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle

Sammie McGrew center, the mother of Subway customer Christopher McGrew who was killed during a robbery Tuesday speaks, as Quanell X right, and McGrew's aunt Jacquelyn McGrew left, look on during a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston.

Photo By James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle

Quanell X right, with Sammie McGrew left, the mother of Christopher McGrew was killed during a robbery Tuesday at the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. where McGrew was customer at the shop, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston.

Photo By James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle

Quanell X right, speaks during a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. where customer Christopher McGrew was killed during a robbery Tuesday as McGrew's sister LaFreda McGrew left, his aunt Jacquelyn McGrew 2nd from left, and his mother Sammie McGrew look on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston.

Photo By James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle

Quanell X right, stands before a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. where customer Christopher McGrew was killed during a robbery Tuesday at the shop, Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston.

Photo By James Nielsen/Houston Chronicle

Sammie McGrew center, the mother of Subway customer Christopher McGrew who was killed during a robbery Tuesday speaks, as Quanell X right, and McGrew's aunt Jacquelyn McGrew left, look on during a press conference in front of the Subway sandwich shop at Loop 610 and MLK Blvd. Thursday, Sept. 19, 2013, in Houston.

Police said the two were carrying pistols when they dashed into the restaurant about 9:20 p.m. and robbed the business. Police said Talbert confronted the two employees while Jones marched McGrew, 36, to the counter and tried to check him for valuables. McGrew fought back and was shot.

The employees locked themselves in a walk-in freezer when they heard the gunshot. Then they heard a second gunshot. When they came out of the freezer, they found McGrew dead.

Before the deadly shooting, Talbert was a suspect in a series of robberies at bus stops in the neighborhood near the Subway shop, police said Monday. Warrants had been issued for his arrest in those cases.

Talbert was arrested Thursday at a house targeted in a drug bust, police said Monday. During questioning, he admitted his role in the Subway robbery, HPD officer Richard Bolton said.

Jones was arrested Friday. Bolton said Jones denied involvement in the robbery and shooting.

McGrew was a quiet, nice man who was a regular at the sandwich shop, said his sister, LaFreda McGrew. She said he was a fixture in the neighborhood where people knew and liked him. They called him the DVD Man, she said, because he always could be seen riding his bicycle through the area and selling DVDs. He also was a musician who played gospel music, a semi-pro boxer and a talented upholsterer who often worked in the family business.

McGrew's father, Charles Johnson, said his son called him on the night of the shooting to say he had stopped at the Subway to get a sandwich. He said he told his son to hurry home because the area could be dangerous at night.

"I said get off those streets," Johnson said. "There's nothing out there for you."